Motorists traveling State Route 322 should expect major delays as construction of US Route 26 and I-99 continues.

According to the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT), many roadways leading to the State College area are now under heavy construction. Motorists will face single-lane traffic and should expect to be stopped for no less than 15 minutes in certain areas of the roadway during blasting operations, including Port Matilda to Skytop and from Skytop to Scotia Road.

Additionally, traffic patterns along much of State Route 322 have been changed and roads have been narrowed to allow roadwork to continue. Motorists are advised to remain alert, use extreme caution and follow traffic signs, according to PennDOT.

Most construction will take place between 8:30 a.m. and 3 p.m. A majority of the construction will take place in the Skytop and Port Matilda areas and other outlying sections of the roadway.

The $195 million project involves construction of a new eight-mile, four-lane highway that is planned to alleviate traffic congestion in the area. Continuing growth of the State College area created safety and traffic problems along the existing roadway. Construction began in early 1999.

The I-99 project in the area surrounding State College will not be completed until 2004, project managers say. Mainline work between Port Matilda and State College is scheduled for completion in late 2004.

Less than 10 percent of the section of the road between Skytop to Scotia Road is completed and construction will continue into late 2004, Enzo Cercer, project manager, said.

However, the Scotia Road interchange has no new traffic pattern changes or delays, Cercer said.

"The Scotia Road section of the road should be completed by the end of this year," Cercer said. "But this won't do much to alleviate traffic because adjacent sections of the road are still under heavy construction."

Motorists should not expect delays from Park Avenue to Bellefonte. Construction for this portion of the road is slated to end before Thanksgiving, said Ben LaParne, project manager of the relocated State Route 26.

"We are putting the finishing touches on the road right now," LaParne said. "It should be completed in the next month and a half or two months. This should substantially help commuters."

Four homes and nearly 335 acres of farmland were destroyed in the construction of the new roadway. All home and landowners were compensated under the Uniform Relocation Assistance and Real Property Acquisition Policies Act of 1970, according to PennDOT.

Motorists can find additional construction updates and delay information at www.pennDOT2.com.